I'll Stand By You
by cncgrad02
Summary: Another SPECULATION from the mind of another intense fan.  Zanessa
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: NO ONE KNOWS WHAT REALLY HAPPENED. THIS IS MERELY SPECULATION. I OWN NOTHING, yet still hope you enjoy! SPOILER: keep the tissues handy and KTZLF ALWAYS!**

There was no denying the fact. The feelings were nerves and anxiety, all in one tiny brunette package. Everyone she had been working with the past couple of months could pick up on this. _She's not herself,_ she overheard them whispering on more than one occasion. Typically all it took was just one look from her for the whispers to stop, but within the past almost three weeks- not long after her return from Las Vegas when the two of them spent his birthday weekend together- when her mood took a turn for the worse, it just became flat out unbearable. Not having any female costars to confide in didn't help matters, either. Other than one of the hair stylists and one of the make up artists, she was one of only three females on set. The grandfatherly figure in the cast took it upon himself to approach her finally one day.

They had had a long day of filming and all she wanted to do was go to her trailer- her sanctuary of sorts while on set- and hopefully get a good nap in during the one hour break. No sooner did she lie down on the small love seat sized couch that sat along one of the walls and close her eyes that there was a knock at her door.

"Go away, please," she said as she pulled one the pillows from behind her back and covered her face with it.

"Vanessa, sweetie. It's Michael. May I come in?"

Upon hearing the voice of Sir Michael Caine- an older gentleman who Vanessa had come to not only look up to as an actor but also view as a grandfather, one she felt she could confide in and confess things to when her own grandfather was so far away- Vanessa let out a sigh and reluctantly sat up on the love seat, bringing her feet to the floor and stood up. As she made her way to the door, she caught sight of herself in the small mirror hanging on the wall.

_I didn't even realize I was crying,_ she thought to herself, quickly wiping her eyes as she rolled her eyes. _I seem to be doing that a lot lately._

As she opened the door, the British actor took one look at her and let himself in, closing the door behind him, and held out his arms. Vanessa just looked at him for brief second and wasted no time closing the distance. Michael had told Vanessa once that she reminds him of his own daughter when she was Vanessa's age.

"Crying again, my dear?"

"How can you tell?" she asked.

He pulled out of the hug and held her at arms length, taking in her appearance.

"Your eyes give you away every time," he told her in his gentle British accent.

In the khaki shorts, purple top, and hiking boots, she looked the part of "the tour guide's island girl daughter" Kailani. However, if one were to look close enough, they would be able to sense the walls of her personal life that she was currently hiding behind. Michael Caine was one of the few who had the ability to see past those walls. Other then her parents and sister, only two others had that knack and none were there with her right at that moment when she most needed them most. Ashley was in Vancouver filming for "Hellcats" and Zac was in New Orleans filming his own movie. While she needed both for different reasons, she was trying to push her selfish desires out of her mind and focus on work.

Vanessa released a breath she didn't realize she had been holding and sat back down on the couch again, letting Michael join her.

"I don't want to be like this," she said.

"Like what?"

"I don't want to be the kind of girl who cries over a guy."

"Another argument?" Michael asked. He had been privy to the inside knowledge that Vanessa and Zac had not had the best past few weeks. Every time he saw her with the phone to her ear, she looked more and more distressed. One of the most recent times in particular, she confided in him that it was because he had just told her that he wouldn't be coming to Los Angeles for her sister's birthday.

"_He's too busy, he says," she had told the older gentleman during one of their breaks when he finally questioned her about the phone call. "I can't be upset over the fact that he's working. His work ethic is one of the things I love most about him. That'd be unfair."_

"_Then what does upset you about it?"_

"_I don't know. I guess that fact that I won't see him at all, but then I feel like if I say that, that's being a hypocrite."_

"_In what way?"_

"_I support what he does and all the traveling and promo-ing and so forth that he always does. I mean, yes, it's hard to be away from each other for long periods of time all the time- and it's never affected me before. Why all of a sudden is it okay for me to be upset by us being separated?"_

"_I think in the past it's only either been for a few weeks at a time or because the two of you have been able to see each other more often than just the sparse amount of time you've spent together this time. The last time you were both working simultaneously is when you were in Vancouver, right?" He paused, waiting for Vanessa's nod of confirmation before continuing. "Even though you were both working, you were in the same city. This time around is a shock to both of you. And especially to be learning this lesson as young as you are… Most people wait until they're married with kids to learn how hard it is to have a relationship in this business."_

"_Vanessa! They need you again!" The voice of Dwayne Johnson called, causing Vanessa to once again put up the personal walls and focus on the task at hand._

"_I'll just have to think about that later," she told Michael as the two made their way back to the set._

"That's just it," she said, bringing the conversation back to the present. "It wasn't an argument. He called and I was filming, so he left a voice mail. When I tried to call him back, I got his voice mail. Once again, we're missing each other. Do you know when the last time we actually talked was? Not voice mail, I mean actually had a conversation?" When Michael shook his head, she continued. "Let's see, today's what? Friday? Saturday?"

"Saturday," he confirmed.

"Wednesday is the last time we actually talked to each other without having to play phone tag, where he called and I actually was able to answer. What kind of relationship is that? It's been three days of not even talking! We've had a text relationship for the past month."

"When does he get in for the big visit?"

"Tomorrow."

"Is that why you've been so on edge these past few days?"

"Is it wrong that I'm nervous?"

"What makes you nervous, Love? I thought you'd be over the moon that you get to see Zac again!"

"Well, I mean, not nervous at seeing him again, per se, but I guess I'm just…" She let her voice trail off as she tried to gather her thoughts before vocalizing them for the older gentleman.

"Just what?" he prompted, after a lengthy pause.

"I'm scared of what's going to happen this next week when we finally get to talk about everything." She spoke the last line with her voice choked up and her chin began to tremble. Giving up the battle, she finally leaned into Michael's chest and he wrapped her in his arms, rubbing his hand up and down her right arm while he just let her cry. When her sobs subsided and the only sound in the room were her sniffles, Michael leaned over to reach for the box of tissues and spoke again.

"He's your first love, isn't he?" At her nod of confirmation, he continued. "It's hard. Distance is hard. You two have made it work for how long now?"

"Five years," she told him as she wiped her eyes with one of the tissues from the box he passed her.

"Wow. That's impressive. Especially for a couple as young as you two," he said. Vanessa gave a small chuckle and just looked at him.

"I'm scared," she said again.

"Of talking to him, or of being alone for the first time?" The two generations just looked at each other- one with knowledge and experience, the other with longing of understanding.

"I don't want to lose him," she whispered.

"And I can promise you that he feels the same. He doesn't want to lose you, either, Vanessa." The room was basked in silence once again, but the silence was short lived as Vanessa's phone quickly began to sound with the familiar ring tone. When the sounds of The Pretenders _I'll Stand By You_ filled the air, Michael took that as his cue and stood. He looked down at his adopted grand-daughter and placed a hand on her cheek.

"Don't be afraid of what the future may hold, my dear."

She stood and placed a gentle kiss to his cheek and offered a feeble "Thank you" before he walked out the door. Once the door was closed behind him, she reached for her phone.

"Hey, Baby Boo," she answered in an almost whisper.

"_Hey, Gorgeous,"_ he responded, making her smile. _"I miss you so much."_

"You don't know how much I needed to hear that right now."

"_I can't wait to see you. Just a few more hours until I'm on the plane."_

"Nineteen and a half hours my time until you're here." Vanessa made her way back to the couch and sat down with her feet tucked under her. She grabbed the small pillow from behind her and held it in her lap as she talked to her MIA boyfriend. "But who's counting, right?"

"_You know what I want to do when I get there?" _he asked, as his voice took on the sultry, seductive tone that she knew all too well.

"What's that?" she asked as she fingered the fringe on the red pillow.

"_Let me just say it involves you… and me…"_

"Yeah?" she said with a small smile and a slight blush.

"…_and I'm sitting at the table while you slave in the kitchen cooking my dinner…"_

"Zachary!" she exclaimed with a smile in her voice as she hit the pillow in her lap. "That wasn't funny!"

"_I got you all hot and bothered didn't I?"_

"Yes," she said after a pause with a pout in her voice.

"_Then I thought it was hilarious!" _he boasted.

"Yes, but getting me all hot and bothered when you're not here to help… Not one of your smartest moves, Efron."

"_Then I guess I'll have to do something about that when I'm there, don't I?"_

"And what exactly do you plan on doing?" she asked, allowing her voice to take its own seductive tone.

"_Oh, I have some ideas," _her told her.

"Why does that sound like a threat to me?" The sound of her love's chuckle making its way through the phone lines warmed her to no end. "I really miss you, Babe."

"_I know. I miss you, too." _Zac paused as he heard his name being called, alerting him that he was needed back on the set. _"Baby, I've got to go. They're calling me back. I'll call you later this evening."_

Vanessa paused, taking deep breath and letting it out slowly before she spoke again. "Okay."

"_That didn't sound too convincing. Are you okay?" _he asked, his voice laced with concern.

"Yeah, I'm fine," she said with a sigh. "It's just that this conversation has lasted six whole minutes- almost seven- and it's the longest one we've had since we saw each other last month in Las Vegas. I just miss being able to do something as simple as just talking to you."

"_I know. Believe me, I know. But we've got six whole days together. We can do nothing but talk if you want. Although I for one would like to accomplish a lot more, but if talking is what you want, then we'll make it happen."_

"You're so crazy," she told him while rolling her eyes, even though she knew he couldn't see her. "Go. They're calling you again. I can hear them. I'll talk to you later."

"_Alright," _he said reluctantly. _"I love you."_

"I love you, too."

By the time Vanessa hit 'end' on her phone, the emotions were beginning to take a toll on her once more. It was becoming too much for her to handle. Being in a serious relationship for over five years and not having the time to give the relationship the attention it so desperately needs? As the thought entered her mind and the tears filled her eyes once more, her thoughts began to wander to the year to come. 2011 was going to be insanely busy for him. He had inked a deal for one movie already, was in talks for several others, and had a new production company that he and Jason were trying to get off the ground. Not to mention all the commitments she herself had; three movie premieres- two of which were within mere weeks of each other- and the promotional tours that go along with them, charity appearances, red carpets for the awards shows… her list was endless.

Yet the heart breaking question remained. It was one she didn't want to ask herself, yet she knew that the topic would be brought up at some point within the next week when Zac was there for his visit. As her eyes closed and she allowed the much needed nap to overtake her, the same thought ran over and over in her mind…

_What exactly would the end of her boyfriend's visit mean for them as a couple?_

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

On Sunday, Vanessa was sitting comfortably in one of the lawn chairs on the balcony of her two bedroom suite with a book open in her lap, although the words were all running together and becoming gibberish right before her eyes. She was finding it hard to focus on the plot that Nicholas Sparks was trying to convey. All she could concentrate on was the phone call she received a mere twenty minutes ago.

"_Baby?" she excitedly shrieked into the phone when she heard the all too familiar ring tone._

_Zac chuckled as he pulled the phone a few inches from his ear. "I'm on the island, Van. I'm here at the baggage claim. As soon as I get my stuff and get a car to bring me to the hotel, I'll be there."_

"_Oh, Baby Boo. You're so close yet so far away!"_

"_Thirty minutes. That's all." As soon as those words left his mouth, the carousel containing the luggage from his flight started. "Maybe even less than that. I see my suitcase now."_

"_Get a car! Get a car!"_

_He laughed just hearing her excitement through the phone. Zac could practically see his girlfriend jumping up and down, unable to contain her self._

"_Give me ten minutes and I'm out of here. I'll be there shortly. It's room 2602, right?" After her confirmation, the young couple ended their conversation, Zac quickly found a car, put his suitcase in the trunk, and climbed in the backseat, giving the driver the name his destination. _

At the hotel, he stood at the front desk and pulled his credit card out of his wallet to pay for a spare room key when the manager stepped out from the back and interrupted the conversation taking place between his newest guest and his employee.

"Actually, Mr. Efron, this one has been taken care of," the manager stated as he reached behind the counter and got an envelope that had Zac's name on it. "Miss Hudgens has already arranged for you to have an extra key for the duration of your stay."

"Wow, thank you. She didn't tell me about that. I appreciate it." He then turned around to face the bellhop who had already placed his suitcase on a rolling rack and led the way to the elevators. Once he reached the twenty-sixth floor, he turned back to the young man.

"I got it from here, Jeff. Thank you for you help."

"Are you sure, Mr. Efron?"

"It's Zac, and yeah, man. I'm sure. Something tells me this little reunion won't be for, um…" He let his voice trail off, not knowing exactly what it was he wanted to say. "Let's just say it's been over a month since we've seen each other."

"Say no more. I got what you mean! I'd be the same way, too!" The bellhop's cheeks instantly reddened and his eyes widened when he realized what he said. "I mean, not for Miss Hudgens. I meant my own girlfriend. Although Miss Hudgens is very hot and all and I would… You know what? I'm just going to get back onto the elevator and go back downstairs so we can forget about my 'open mouth- insert foot' disease. Deal?"

"Deal," Zac said with a laugh, as he handed the bellhop a tip and shook his hand. "Thank you again, Jeff. We'll see you around."

"Maybe," Jeff told him with a smirk. Zac just winked at him and picked up his suitcase, beginning his walk to the end of the hall to find the door that matched the key card in his hand.

When he reached the door, he let himself in and left his suitcase just inside. He stepped out of his Sperry's and instantly spotted the long dark hair of his beloved as she had it draped over the back side of the lounge chair on the balcony. Grinning to himself, he stealthily made his way to the balcony and crept upon Vanessa. Noticing the book in her lap, he knew luck was on his side for sneaking up on her. When she was lost in the world of books, anything could get past her.

He leaned down and slowly pushed her hair to the side, placing a gentle kiss just below her ear. As he worked his lips down the column of her neck, he heard a _thump_ as her book slipped from her lap and landed on the ground at her feet and felt her fingers as she worked them into his shortened hair and started massaging his scalp.

She let a soft moan escape her mouth before speaking. "You're here," she whispered.

"It better be me. Otherwise that moan would really have me questioning some of your goings-on here in Hawaii."

"Only for you. That sound is only for you." She slowly stood from her chair and let him wrap his arms around her petite body, holding her close.

"I've missed you so, so much," he whispered into her hair.

"I've missed you, too. I'm so glad you're here finally. I was getting lonely."

Brown eyes met blue as Zac cupped her face in his hands and leaned in to give her the proper kiss that they both deserved. All of the passion, the desire, the wanting- it was all placed in that one kiss. As they pulled back and he leaned his forehead to meet hers, they each let out a content sigh.

"It's feels so good to have you in my arms again. I've been dreaming of this moment for weeks," he softly admitted.

"I feel like I'm seventeen again!" she said with a giggle.

Zac pulled back and looked at her accusingly, taking this opportunity to pick on her. "Are you mocking my movie, Hudgens?"

"No, I'm not!" she told him with a soft smack to his arm, as her face changed to an exaggerated pout, to show him that she wasn't taking his teasing seriously. "You've only been here not even five minutes and already you're picking on me!"

"I'm sorry, Babe," he wrapped his arms around her once more and gave her a kiss to cheek to apologize. "Now, please tell me. Why do you feel like you're seventeen?"

Vanessa stood on her tiptoes to place her lips to his jaw line, slowly working her way down his neck, as she spoke softly. "I just remember a time in our lives when _this,_" she paused as she reached her small hand out to stroke him through his khaki shorts "was a normal occurrence even when we hadn't been apart for weeks."

Zac leaned his head back and drew in a deep breath, savoring her soft touch. He brought his head forward so their foreheads were touching once more before he voiced what his body was commanding. "Van, I need you…"

"Oh, I can tell," she told him seductively, as she leaned up and gave him a passionate kiss. When the two pulled back, Vanessa took his hand and- giving him a look over her shoulder- led him back through the living room of her suite and into the bedroom. With the sound of the lock twisting on the door, the two young lovers knew they were just beginning to make up for lost time.

And that's exactly where they spent the next few hours of the day… locked away in their own blissful world of each other.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

The next morning, Zac woke before Vanessa. He found his shorts that had been discarded the previous night and stepped into them as he slipped from the room and crept out into the living room. A quick glance at the clock told him that it was only 8:30 am. He made his way to the coffee pot and prepared it- using the bag of freshly ground Starbucks that he found in the refrigerator- then walked out onto the balcony. Zac stood with his hands leaning on the iron railing, looking out into the ocean and taking in the view before him. He never got tired of visiting Hawaii. No matter how many times he and Vanessa had been to the islands, each visit was always special for them. There had even been a conversation at one point about them possibly buying a house together to use as their own private get-a-way. Those plans hadn't become a reality yet, though.

As Zac began to get lost in his thoughts, he rested his forearms on the railing and leaned forward even further. As he took in a deep breath of the crisp ocean air, he felt two slender arms wrap around his torso and a pair of lips place gentle kisses across his shoulder blade. He gave a half smile as he turned and wrapped his arms around her tiny body covered in the short cotton robe from the bathroom.

"What are you doing up?" he asked.

"I was going to ask you the same thing," she said with a yawn.

"Yeah, but I asked you first," he responded.

"What are we, in middle school?" she asked, earning a laugh from him.

"Glad to see you're not grumpy in the mornings anymore. What cured you of that?" His question caused his girlfriend to pinch his bicep. "Hey! I'm the one who has access to the Starbucks. Why are you abusing me?"

"You went to get Starbucks?" she asked in a small hopeful voice, with a small pout gracing her facial features.

"Um, no. You've got Starbucks in the fridge. But I found it and made it."

"Oh."

"So, I ask again… what are you doing up so early?"

"What time is it?"

"It's about 8:40 by now. I thought you'd still be asleep for awhile."

"I haven't been able to sleep very well lately. Not without you, anyway. I've never been able to sleep without you. So when I reached for you and only felt the sheet, I woke up. I thought I was dreaming… but you really are here. And why are you up so early?"

"It's not early in New Orleans," he stated matter of fact.

"What time is it there?" she asked.

"Almost 1:00," he told her, chuckling when her eyes grew wide.

"Oh, yeah," she said as she worked the time difference through her head. "So what do you want to do today?" she asked, as she made her way back into the kitchen. She opened the cupboard and stood on her tiptoes to get down two coffee cups.

"I don't know. What ideas did you have?" he asked her, getting the cream from the refrigerator and quickly finding the sugar bowl and a spoon. He watched as Vanessa filled the cups with the dark liquid and lifted herself to sit on the counter top as he added the cream and sugar. As he crossed the kitchen floor, she reached for the cup he was extending to her and started to swing her legs back and forth. She took a slow sip from the cup before responding.

"I dunno. I do know that I want to go surfing with you while you're here."

Zac rolled his eyes and shook his eyes slowly as he thought about the last time he and his girlfriend had attempted surfing together… then his mind turned to the pictures of them surfing together that had made it all over the internet.

"Are you sure?" he asked, tentatively. Seeing her excited nod, he sighed before relenting. "Okay. But if we see any photographers, we're coming back to the room," he tried to threaten.

"Fine by me. That's not much of a threat, Efron.. Don't you know that by now?" she asked as she brought her legs out and wrapped them around his waist, pulling him in closer, and linked her ankles together to hold him in place.

"What about lunch?" he asked.

"I say let's eat it!" she said with a giggle.

"Wow," he said with a shake of his head. "You're coffee is starting to kick in quicker and quicker every time I see you." When her giggles died down, he continued. "I meant why don't we see if your cast wants to meet us for lunch or something before they all take off for the week. I'd like to meet them all."

"By 'meet them all', you mean Josh and Michael, right?" she asks, teasing him not only about his jealous bones that made up his body when it came to sharing her with her on-screen boyfriends, but also his obsession with Michael. When she told Zac months ago that Michael Caine's name was included on the cast list, he got jealous for a different reason.

"_You're in a movie with Sir Michael Caine? That's so not fair! I love him!"_

"_I know you do and if I didn't know any better, I'd say you love him more than you do me," she joked. _

"_I've seen all of his movies and followed his career for years! I'm so jealous! Can I meet him when I come visit you on set?" he asked, reminding her of the little boy in the pictures his mom had shared with her years before. She found it humorous how excited he was about the mere fact that she was in a movie with him. She could only imagine what he would be like when he actually met her elder co-star._

"I just think it'll make a good impression if I show that I'd like to meet them and not make me look like a snob by ignoring them while I'm here," he told her, trying to think of a good excuse on his feet.

"In other words, you want to ask them for embarrassing stories about me?"

"Busted," he said as he leaned in for a kiss. "Or maybe even share some," he joked with their lips still connected as she playfully smacked him on his bare chest.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

Later in the morning- when the two finally untangled themselves long enough to get ready- Zac and Vanessa made their way from the hotel and headed down the street. They decided to enjoy the fresh air and walk the four blocks to the restaurant where they were meeting Vanessa's male co-stars. As they walked with their fingers interlaced and their hands dangling between them, Zac picked on Vanessa about being the only girl on set and her giggles filled his ears. He marveled at the sound and only one thought ran through his mind: _If I did nothing but listen to her laugh this whole visit, it would be perfect._

When they got to the restaurant, they greeted Josh and Michael. They were the only two that Vanessa had been able to get in touch with a few hours earlier and when she shared the news with Zac that Josh and Michael were the only two that would join them, she swore he let out a girlish shriek of joy over the idea of meeting Michael Caine. She rolled her eyes and laughed at him and- of course- he denied it. She insisted, however, that she would forever hold that information deep in the confines of her brain for teasing him later.

When the two of them arrived at the restaurant, she pulled Zac aside for a quick pep talk before entering.

"Okay, you. Now listen to me," she started as she pointed a finger at Zac. "I enjoy working with these men. You are the only man in my life and the only one I want to have in my life. You have nothing to be worried about when it comes to Josh, so stop being jealous about him. Do you hear me?"

When Zac gave a small smile knowing he'd been busted on that, he nodded. "Yeah, I hear you. I love you,"

"I love you, too. Now, moving on. Michael- don't embarrass him. He's just a man like you are. You know how all those screaming girls borderline get on your nerves? Keep that in mind when you meet him. Don't act like one of them. Please?"

"I wasn't going to act like a-" he paused as he looked into her chocolate brown eyes and caught the knowing look in them. "Alright, fine. I'll be good. I promise."

"Good," she told him as she leaned in a gave him a small quick peck to his lips. "Now let's go. They're both already here; I see their cars over there."

As Zac held the door open for Vanessa, her eyes scanned the tables in front of them and she spotted her two co-stars in a corner booth. She wasn't surprised to see Josh goofing off and Michael trying hard not to laugh at the antics of the younger man. Josh spotted them and waved them over.

"Vanessa!" he called out, causing Michael to turn in his seat and smile at her.

The two stood from their seats as she led Zac over to them. Vanessa watched as the three men all shook hands and exchanged polite greetings. She also noticed with amusement the sparkle in Zac's blue eyes when he shook Michael's hand.

_Is he trembling?_ she thought to herself with glee. _He is such a girl! This is hilarious. I have to remember to tease him about that later._

They took their seats and the conversation immediately focused on Vanessa.

"So, Zac, your girl can really hold her own," Josh spoke with a slight nod in Vanessa's direction.

"Oh, yeah?" Zac asked with interest.

"Oh, it's true," Michael confirmed. "No matter how much the guys pick on her, she's quick with a come back. It surprises me sometimes how easily she can just get right in there and mix it up with them."

"I guess Corbin and Chris taught me more than we realized," she said to Zac, referring to two of their _High School Musical_ costars who had become pseudo brothers to her over the years.

"Sir, I just want to thank you for looking out for her," Zac stated with a slight stammer to his words and a tremor in his voice. Vanessa smiled as she reached her hand out under the table and found his gripping his knee tightly. She laced their fingers together and gave a slight squeeze, her way of reassuring him and telling him to calm down.

"Zachary- young man- first of all, I'm only 'Sir' in England. Last time I checked, we're not in England so therefore, I'm Michael. And second of all, Vanessa makes it easy for me to look out for her. She reminds me of one of my daughters when she was Vanessa's age."

"Well, at any rate, thank you. It makes it a lot easier being away from her knowing that someone's looking out for her."

Michael waited until Zac and Josh were involved in their own conversation about the upcoming football games that would be taking place that Thursday- what teams were playing and who their picks were to win- before turning his attention back to Vanessa. He noticed Vanessa as she carefully watched her real life boyfriend size up her on screen boyfriend. The older gentleman saw the interest in her eyes over the interaction with the two. He knew that Vanessa was cautious of Zac's jealous side that she told him only came out whenever he met her on screen love interests and he watched the younger gentlemen converse with each other as Vanessa looked on. When she rolled her eyes at a comment made by Josh and turned to look out the window to her right, she felt Michael lightly nudge her foot with his causing her to turn her attention to him.

"You seem even more relaxed than the other day when we last talked. Did everything get straightened out with you two?" he asked. She gives him a nod and offers a small smile as she sneaks another glance at Zac. The two watched for a moment longer as Zac and Josh remained lost in their football bubble before Michael spoke once again.

"You know, my dear, I was thinking about you last night. I think it was about the time Zac was due in town, if I remember from your excited ramblings earlier in the week," he told her, earning an embarrassed smile to form on Vanessa's face as she lowered her eyes to the table. "I gave your dilemma a lot of thought. Don't put off talking to him about everything. The two of you need to figure out your schedules, your projects. And you need to decide your priorities together. That's what it comes down to, Love: your priorities."

Vanessa locked eyes with Michael. He saw behind her brown orbs a look of understanding and hurt all in one. She drew in a deep breath and let it out slowly and turned her attention back to the window. Michael knew that she was thinking about what he had said and that was the reason for the invisible walls to appear once again. But he also knew that it needed to be shared. The role he played on and off camera was one that he enjoyed the most- that of grandfather. He loved spending time with his own grandchildren and when he met Vanessa two months ago, he immediately wrapped his arms around her and took her in under his wing. This is why seeing her hurt like this made him hurt, too. It was like seeing one of his own grandchildren hurting. Regardless of the outcome of this week that she spent with Zac, happiness was his wish for her.

Without turning his attention to her, Zac could sense the change in Vanessa. He didn't know what she and Michael were talking about, but he knew that it had to be something Michael said that caused her to temporarily shut down. From the corner of her eye, Vanessa saw Zac turn his head slightly in her direction. She turned to look at him with the hope of reassuring him that all was okay. Unfortunately, what she saw from him in return was a harsh look delivered in Michael's direction.

_Don't say anything,_ she silently begged him. _He didn't mean anything by any of what he said._

"Guys, I have to use the ladies room, if you would excuse me please," she announced to the table and urged Zac to let her out. As the two of them slipped out from the booth and stood, she stood on her tip toes and gave him a kiss on his lips, which he returned, and wrapped her arms around his neck and whispered in his ear the three words he never tired of hearing. "I love you." Her soft breath felt like angels wings against his skin and he smiled as he felt her lips on his neck.

"I love you, too," he told her before giving her a kiss on her cheek and releasing her and watching as she walked away in the direction of the bathroom. When he sat back down, Josh caught his attention again. Zac had become impressed with his girlfriend's co-star. It was minutes after they sat down that Zac realized he had nothing to be jealous of- this time.

"Hey, Zac, I'm going to get a drink. You want one?"

Josh stood and excused himself as well, leaving Zac and Michael alone at the table. The two generations sat in silence for a minute, making Zac slightly uncomfortable. He was certain that the older man had said something to make Vanessa withdraw, and he was currently having an internal battle about whether he should say something to the man he has admired for so many years or not. Finally, he decided to keep the conversation on mutual grounds and- after taking a deep breath- spoke up about the one thing they apparently have in common.

"So Vanessa's really been ok these past few weeks?"

"She's doing wonderfully with the production but that's not what you're talking about is it?" the older gentleman asked. Zac was amazed at his ability to read his mind.

"We haven't been able to talk as much as we usually do with the time difference and shooting schedules. But it sure seems like there's something else going on that she won't talk to me about," he hesitantly admitted.

"She will now that you're here," Michael told him.

"So there is something?" Zac asked, searching for confirmation.

"Priorities Zac. You both have them. While you're here, you both need to get those priorities in order. I've told Vanessa the same thing. You're both quite young and there's a lot you want to accomplish. If you mean as much to each other as it seems, then it's time to get those priorities in order. Don't be afraid of what the future holds, for both of you."

Zac searched the eyes of the older man and could pick up on a hint of experience. He knew that Vanessa had taken to him and admired him, sometimes even confided in him when she wouldn't anyone else. It was for that reason that Zac found himself latching on to every word that Michael was sharing with him at that moment in time.

Vanessa emerged from the bathroom and paused near the corner of the wall before walking back out into the open of the restaurant and took note of the look on Zac's face. She'd know that look anywhere. He was deep in thought about something and that wasn't always a good thing. Shaking the thoughts from her head, she walked the rest of the way to the table. Michael stood upon her return and gave her a pat on the back. When she sat back down in the booth, she reached a hand up until it rested on the back of Zac's neck and rubbed gently. He turned his attention to her while Michael was talking to the waitress.

"Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Just thinking." Vanessa gave him a small nod. She knew that there was more to it than 'just thinking' and had a feeling that she knew exactly what was on his mind. But she quickly decided that this was not the place or time. When Josh returned with the drinks, the atmosphere quickly turned back to one of joking and teasing, although she could tell that Zac was still holding back and acting subdued. The group of four continued with their light-hearted lunch and when the time came, all went their separate ways.

As the two of them walked back to the hotel, she finally posed the question that she had been holding back ever since she returned from the bathroom.

"Question."

"What's up?" he asked.

"I saw the look on your face when I came back from the bathroom."

"That's a statement, not a question," he pointed out.

"Smart ass. You didn't let me finish!" she told him as he ducked- fighting to escape her hand that tried to make contact with his chest.

"Fine," he said with a chuckle, as he leaned down to give her a quick kiss in surrender. "Finish."

"You were pretty intense. What were you and Michael talking about while I was gone and Josh was at the bar?"

"You," he said simply.

"Me?" she questioned incredulously.

"You and how absolutely, amazingly sexy you are."

Vanessa rolled her eyes at her boyfriend's antics. "Zac, I seriously doubt Michael Caine was talking about how sexy I am."

"I'm telling you, Babe, even the old guys notice."

"Whatever," she said laughing. Deep down, Vanessa knew there was more to it than that, but she decided to just enjoy the time she had with him while he was in town and let it go… for now.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

The rest of their week was spent doing nothing more than merely spending their time together and enjoying every minute of it. They spent evenings walking hand in hand along the beach watching the sunset and sharing sweet kisses, they dined, they shopped- or rather she shopped and he became her bag carrier-, they spent days basking in the sun while playing in the ocean, and they spent the few nights they had making love with the moon light shining through the window of the bedroom in Vanessa's suite.

Those moments when they were tangled in the sheets together, their bodies intertwined with Zac running his fingers up and down her back while they shared whispered sweet nothings were ranked upon their favorite moments in their relationship. It was just them- no fans screaming out their names and vying for their attention, no photographers with their flashes blinding them, no family members asking them about their future. Just them in their own little bubble of bliss.

On Zac's final afternoon in Hawaii, he set out in search of Vanessa when he returned from his run on the beach. He found her sitting out on the balcony, on the phone with Ashley talking animatedly about how perfect this week had been and how extremely happy she was that he had been there. The slight breeze coming in off the ocean was gently blowing through her hair and he couldn't help but take a moment to take in the sight before him. He took a step over the threshold to approach her but stopped when he heard her next words.

"No, Ash, I haven't talked to him yet," she spoke into the phone with soft sigh. "I was waiting until tonight, honestly. I didn't want to mess up this week. It's just been so perfect and we both needed it, you know?" A noise behind her caused her to pause in her conversation with their mutual best friend and she turned to see Zac just as he turned to walk back into the living room. "Um, Ash, I need to go… No, I'm fine. I just- you know what? I'll call you back tomorrow after Zac leaves, okay?… Alright, love you, too. Bye." Vanessa ended the call and toyed with her phone as she held it in her hand, her thoughts running rampant in her mind.

_Tonight,_ she told herself. _As hard as this is going to be, I need to talk to him tonight before he leaves._ Vanessa took a deep breath and stood from her seat and walked into the living room just in time to see Zac shut the door to the bedroom.

_Crap, _she thought to herself. _He heard something. _When she heard the shower turn on, Vanessa sat down on the couch and turned on the tv and waited.

When Zac stepped under the steady stream of the shower, only one thought ran through his mind.

_Tonight. We're talking tonight. It can't be put off anymore. _He ran his fingers through his hair working the shampoo into rich lather and attempted to shake the thoughts from his hair. _I can't think about that now. _

Zac stepped out from the shower and wrapped a towel around his torso. When he came into the bedroom, he found Vanessa rummaging through the drawers in search of something. He walked up behind her and wrapped his arms around her petite waist and gently nuzzled her neck, feeling her smile in return. She stood from what she was doing and leaned into him, reveling in the feel of his arms holding her tightly.

"I love you," she told him sincerely.

"I love you, too," he told her before kissing her neck. Vanessa reached her hand up to thread her fingers through his still wet hair only for Zac to pull back before their antics got too intense. "Get dressed," he told her suddenly.

"What?"

"Get dressed," he repeated. "We're going out for dinner and then coming back here for alone time before tomorrow."

"Where are we going? How should I dress?"

"Casual," he told her as he reached into his suitcase to pull out a pair of jeans and a dark t-shirt.

The two continued getting ready and about forty-five minutes later, they were walking out the door and heading down to the parking lot and climbing in the car. They enjoyed a quiet night out in public- a rare occurrence for them- and just enjoyed being together. Laughing, joking, gently sharing loving words back and forth… no talk whatsoever about the next day and Zac's departure back to Louisiana.

As they emerged from the restaurant- just when they thought that they had lucked out by being able to avoid the paparazzi for the entire week- the familiar blindness via flashbulbs was instantly thrown in their faces. Zac decided that it was time to show the world that he just didn't care. When the valet walked off to get their car and Vanessa joked about him having forgotten his belt, he tugged on his pants to pull them up.

"I don't care about a stupid belt," he told her as he leaned in and captured her lips with his, taking her by surprise.

"The cameras," she whispered as she pulled back a millimeter and kept her lips still attached to his.

"Don't care," was his whispered response as he placed his hand on the back of her head to pull her closer. He felt as she wrapped her hands around his neck and held on for dear life. As she pulled away to catch her breath, he slowly made his way to her neck, placing a kiss to his favorite spot on her clothed body.

"What brought that on?" she asked. "I mean, not that I'm complaining, but that's totally out of character for you in public."

His sexy smirk was all the response she needed as he put the toothpick back in his mouth- and she rolled her eyes at the small stick- and she moved to stand behind him and wrapped her arms around his chest and abdomen. She leaned her cheek against his back and brought her hands up and started running them up and down the muscles hidden underneath his black t-shirt. As he stood stoic, Vanessa couldn't help but notice how distant he felt to her.

_Does he know something?_ she thought to herself as she turned her head from one side to the other, pausing to place a gentle kiss against the cotton material.

When the valet returned with their car, Zac handed him some cash and took Vanessa by the hand, helping her into the car.

_When we get back to the room… That's when we'll talk. Not here in public, _Zac thought to himself as he shut her door and walked around to the driver's side and got in.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

The ride back to the hotel was nice, but quiet. Neither talked during the short drive. As they held hands across the center console, both were lost in their own thoughts about the inevitable conversation that they both knew was to come. As they approached a stoplight and Zac turned his head to look in her direction, he noticed that she was looking out the window. He lifted her hand that was joined with his and brought it to his lips, placing gentle kisses on each of her fingers. Vanessa turned to watch him and just smiled at him, reveling in the attention.

"Go," she said softly when the light turned green, forcing his attention back to the road in front of them.

An hour and a half later found the couple snuggled up on the couch, under a blanket, with a movie playing. He had known better than to let Vanessa choose the movie. But he also knew that her pleasure would give him joy as well. When she emerged from the bedroom with a copy of _Enchanted_ in her hands, Zac rolled his eyes.

"_Seriously?" he asked. _

"_Believe it or not, I've not watched it in a while," she said._

"_Fine. Put it in. I'll get the popcorn ready."_

The two were finally comfortable on the couch with a bowl of popcorn resting on the couch between them and the movie playing on the tv screen. About halfway through the movie, Zac glanced over at Vanessa and caught her staring off into space, apparently lost in her own thoughts. He leaned forward setting the popcorn bowl on the table, picked up the remote and hit the power button, causing the set in front of them to go black.

Vanessa just looked at him and watched as he rested his elbows on his knees and ran his hands through his hair. He then brought them forward and ran them over his face. Vanessa knew this to mean that he was deep in thought and he was about to bring up a topic that was sure to be intense. She watched the familiar gesture and just waited for him to speak first, swallowing the unexpected lump that had formed in her throat in the process. She had a suspicious feeling way deep down that she knew what was coming.

"Well?" he asked finally, letting out a heavy sigh.

Vanessa knew what Zac was getting at. She had been trying to think of a way to bring up to subject herself. The only problem was that she wasn't ready to admit it to herself… much less vocalize it first.

"_Well _what?" she asked.

"Which one of us is going to bring it up first?" he asked, still not looking directly at her. He didn't want her to see the emotions that he was working hard to keep at bay.

"Bring what up?" she questioned, still in denial.

Zac finally dared to look at her, instantly regretting it when he saw the tears glistening in her eyes. "Van, we've got the hugest elephant that either of us has ever seen sitting right there," he told her as he pointed across the room.

Vanessa struggled to take in a deep breath before speaking again. "Can't we just name it Dumbo and tell it to fly away?" she whispered with a sniffle.

Zac held his arm out and reached for her, pulling her into his lap. As he started to run his hands up and down her leg, Vanessa turned to face him for the first time since the start of the dreaded conversation.

"Baby, listen. We both know what's going on here. Our schedules are getting too intense and we can't keep-"

"Zac, don't," she interrupted. "Please? We both know where this conversation is going and I don't think I could handle it. Not right now." She struggled through the emotions to get her next words out of her mouth. "I just want to spend tonight with you. Just you and me. No talk of work, or of our schedules. Just us."

Zac just studied the woman sitting in his lap. All he needed was to look deep in her eyes to realize how much they both needed the same thing.

"Tomorrow," he began, while running his hands through her hair. "Before I leave, we need to reach a decision."

"And we will," she told him as she leaned in and closed the distance between them. He met her halfway and gently pushed he back so she was laying down on the couch, him carefully hovering over her.

Their love making that night was different than usual. All the love, all the emotions, all the passion that night held a new power. Vanessa had never experienced such highs and was determined to send Zac into a new stratosphere as well. As they came down from their first high, Zac scooped her into his arms and carried her into the bedroom, where they continued their union several times over and said good bye to a night that was filled with loving words, promises of their future, and tears over what was to come, and hello to the morning. A morning that held the most difficult discussion the two young lovers had shared in their five plus years together.

When the clock read 6:00 am, Zac took Vanessa by the hand and pulled her from the bed, making sure he grabbed the sheet, too. He wrapped the sheet tightly around them, bringing their bodies close together, and led her out onto the balcony. He held her naked body close to his and leaned down to place a kiss to her exposed shoulder.

"What are we doing?" she asked.

"I don't know about you, but I'm watching the sunrise with the love of my life." His words were as gentle against her bare skin as the breeze that was coming in off the ocean and blew through his hair. The two stood in silence for several moments before Vanessa reluctantly broke the silence.

"Are we ever going to get this again?" she asked quietly as she stared out at the waves lapping against the beach.

"Of course we are," he told her. "I can't promise you when or where, but I can promise you that we will, one day."

"I hate our schedules for this next year," she said in a soft whisper.

"I do, too, Baby. Believe me, I do, too." He slowly turned her so that the two were standing face to face and tightened his hold on the sheet, pulling their naked bodies closer in the process. As she looked into his blue eyes, she noticed for the first time the tears that had appeared there, too. He lowered his eyes and swallowed hard before speaking again. "I just don't know what else to do," he said with a shake of his head. He brought his eyes back up to meet hers before continuing. "I want to be with you, but…."

Vanessa freed a hand from its confines under the sheet and placed it gently on his cheek. "Zac, please don't finish that thought," she begged as the tears slowly began to fall freely from her eyes.

"Baby, I don't want to be apart form you. You mean more to me than anything in my life right now," Zac said as he leaned into her soft touch, sighing heavily. "But work…"

"We can try more… fight harder," she attempted.

"Van, we've tried everything we know to try… the distance over these next months… we just can't bridge that." He moved his eyes to keep from looking at her distraught face.

"That's not… we're supposed to be able to find an answer… together, right?" she asked with her last bit of hope.

She listened to his silence for a long moment before pushing again. "Zac?" Still he didn't offer a response, causing Vanessa's tears to fall harder.

She sucked in a breath and looked at the sheet that seemed to be the only thread holding them together. "So I guess this, um, this is it?" she asked in a quivering voice.

She should have listened to that little voice in her head that told her to not look at his face. The sight of his tears falling, too, made her look completely away from him. She pulled one hand up to try and wipe away her tears, but they only fell faster.

Vanessa gave a small nod while choking on her ever growing sobs before throwing her arms around his neck, causing Zac to pull her closer against his chest. The couple just stood there crying together over their uncertain future, repeating the three words that held so much truth and hope for them in the past and would continue to do so in the future.

"I love you," he told her. "I love you so much."

"I love you, too, Baby Boo. I can't stand the thought of losing you."

"Baby, you're not losing me. Not now, not ever. We just need to adjust our focus for a little bit."

The two stood there clutching onto each other as the sun made its way higher in the sky, representing a new beginning. Of course, neither one wanted to recognize the bright symbol.

They slowly made their way back into the bedroom and snuggled back under the covers for a few hours of peace before Zac had to leave to catch his flight. He leaned over to set the alarm for four and a half hours later and pulled her body so it fit comfortably against his. The two clutched to each other for dear life, knowing that their time together was quickly coming to an end, and faded into dream land together.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

When the alarm sounded at 10:30, Zac reached across Vanessa to turn off the alarm and slowly made his way from the bed. He picked up a pair of his boxers and a t-shirt from the suitcase and made his way into the bathroom to get a quick shower. When he emerged from the bathroom once more, he saw that the bed was empty and his suitcase had been zipped shut and was sitting on the bed with a pair of jeans next to it. He slipped on the faded jeans and moved back into the bathroom to gather his toiletries.

He noticed movement in the mirror behind him and glanced up with the toothbrush hanging from his mouth to see Vanessa standing in the doorway. She was standing with her hands stuffed in an old hoodie sweatshirt of his and just watched his movements. As he spit the toothpaste from his mouth and wiped his face on the hand towel hanging nearby, he turned around to face her.

"Hey, why the long face?" he asked, attempting to make light of the situation.

"I'm not ready to see you leave," she admitted quietly, her eyes darting all over the room. Zac watched her, taking in her nervous expression. He let out a sigh as he approached her, knowing the severity of the situation, and placed a finger under her chin lifting it up, forcing her to look him in the eyes.

"And I'm not ready to leave," he told her.

"When will we see each other again?" she asked in a small voice.

"I wish I knew, Baby. I wish I knew."

"It's so unfair!" she cried out in frustration as she moved forward and lowered her head so that she could rest it against the hard muscles of his abdomen. He brought his hand up to run his fingers through her thick dark curls.

"I know, Van. I know." The two savored their last few moments together, not knowing what their future would hold. Finally Vanessa spoke the one thought that both had but neither wanted to vocalize.

"What do we tell people?"

"Who, our families?"

Vanessa brought her lips into a tight line. "Well, yeah. But they're not who I talking about." Zac just looked at her. He knew what she was asking, but didn't want to take the conversation in that direction. "We have to figure that out, Zac. The press is going to go crazy once they hear!"

He let out a sigh before taking her hands in his and answering her. "We'll cross that line when we get to it. I think we need to talk to our families before saying anything to the press."

After a moment of silence, she spoke again. "What time do you need to leave to get to the airport on time?" Before he had a chance to answer, the phone rang from in the living room. Sighing, he left the bathroom and went to answer the phone.

"Hello?… Yeah, okay, thank you. I'll uh- I'll be right down." Zac hung up the phone and turned around to walk back into the bedroom, only to see that Vanessa had followed him and had her hands buried in the pockets of the hoodie once more. The quiet tears she cried made tracks down her cheeks.

"It's time?" she asked in a whisper. Zac's silent nod was all the answer she needed. Vanessa nodded in response and turned to go back into the bedroom, emerging a moment later with his suitcase in her hands.

"Have a safe flight," she told him. "I guess I'll uh- I'll see you soon." She turned back around and began to walk back into the bedroom.

"Van," he called out to her, causing her to freeze in her steps and turn back around to face him. He held his arms out to her and she practically threw herself into them. "I'm not going to stop feeling for you what I feel now," he whispered into her ear. "You're the best friend I've ever had and if I lose that-"

"I don't want to lose that," she told him, shaking her head emphatically. "I _can't_ lose that. I need you in my life."

"Then you'll have me," he told her as the phone rang again. This time, Vanessa answered it.

"Hello?… Oh, yeah, sorry. He um, he'll be right down." When she hung up the phone and turned around, she saw him watching her. He approached her slowly and captured her lips with his. The two savored the feel and couldn't help but wonder when they'd feel that again. As he pulled back, he leaned his forehead to rest against hers, their cheeks both wet with their tears.

"I love you, Vanessa Hudgens. Don't forget that."

"And I love you, Zac Efron. Don't you forget it, either."

He reluctantly pulled away and made his way to the door with Vanessa following him. He pulled the door open and turned around to face her, bringing his hand up to rest against her cheek.

"I'll see you soon," he told her. Without waiting for a response, he turned back around and exited the room that had caused the couple so much bliss within the past week. Vanessa stood leaning against the doorframe and watched as he walked down the hall. Once he reached the elevator, he turned to look at her once more- taking in her appearance and committing it to his memory- and lifted his hand and blew her a small kiss down the hall. She reached up to catch the kiss and brought her closed fist to rest against her heart.

As she watched the elevator doors closed- concealing him from her sight- she shut the door to the room and leaned against the door, taking a moment to let reality sink in. Finally, Vanessa pushed herself from the door and found her phone sitting on the counter of the bar. She picked it up and quickly found the one entry in her address book that she was looking for and brought it up to her ear, waiting for the person on the other end to answer.

"Ashley?" she said, sniffling. "He's gone." Vanessa finally let the emotions of the past twelve hours overtake her and slid down the wall, sitting on the floor.

Listening to the words her best friend and proverbial sister was telling her at that moment and the sobs coming from the other end of the phone lines, Ashley knew there was only one thing to do.

"_I'm on my way, Nessa. I'll get on the next flight out and I'll be there soon."_


	2. Chapter 2

**_IMPORTANT AUTHOR'S NOTE:_**

**_Dear Readers,_**

**_Given the recent rumors (yes, I will keep calling them rumors until we're told otherwise by Zac or Vanessa) I'm having a hard time right now. I'm standing on the window ledge, fighting hard to get back inside. I started writing this story because WE DON'T KNOW WHAT REALLY HAPPENED IN THEIR PRIVATE LIFE and my imagination was in overdrive. However, the further into it I got, the harder the RUMORS became to read. Please- I beg you- read this with hope in you hearts and let's all hope and pray that Zac and Vanessa will one day KTZLF._**

**_With love you you all from SC,_**

**_cncgrad02 (Oh, yeah. I forgot to tell you that I don't own anything. Not even Bath and Body Works... I just work there!)_**

Michael Caine was a very observant man. It was one of the things that made him the amazing actor that he was- his ability to read people and situations and to just know how to adapt. This particular skill of his came in very handy on that particular Sunday when he returned to the Hawaiian hotel. He had spent the Thanksgiving holiday with his family in Los Angeles and enjoyed every moment. He tried hard to not think about work during his time off, but in the back of his mind were thoughts of a certain young brunette costar that he had come to love as one of his own.

As he and his wife made their way through the lobby of the hotel, his keen sense of observation kicked in. He and Shakira stood at the desk getting a spare key for her and checking his messages from his time away, they heard the familiar ding sound from the bay of elevators. Curious, Michael turned to glance over his shoulder and spotted the famous dark haired actor that he had met just days prior. He was the same actor that had made his new friend Vanessa so incredibly happy, yet such a bundle of anxiety at the same time.

Noticing the suitcase that Zac was carrying, Michael knew that the two had just said their good byes. As Zac got closer and Michael took in his appearance, he made the assumption that those good byes had more than likely not gone very well. Just as he was trying to wrap his mind around everything, the voice of his wife brought him back to reality.

"Michael, isn't that Zac-"

"Yes, dear, it is. And any other time I would gladly introduce you. However, he and Vanessa must have just said good bye and judging from the expression on his face, I don't think it went very well at all."

The couple watched as a somber looking Zac approached the man dressed in black standing just inside the doors of the hotel. Michael observed as Zac shook the driver's hand with what he could only assume to be mere formality and handed him his bag. He also noticed as Zac climbed in the back of the car without a smile, his red eyes and dark circles hidden from the public behind his dark sunglasses.

While he sat and waited, only one thought kept running through Zac's mind: _Don't look back. No matter how hard it is, the two of you are doing what you need to do right now at this point in time for your careers. You need to be the strong one right now._

When he heard the driver's side door close, he looked down at his phone and with a tap on the screen, brought it to life. He sat and studied the picture that stared back at him- the picture of him and Vanessa that had been taken backstage after _Rent_ just three months prior. It had become one of his favorite pictures of the two of them and he quickly made it the wallpaper on his phone just moments after it was taken. As he felt the car start to pull away from the building that housed his heart twenty-six floors above him, he released a heavy sigh and slumped down in his seat. Zac normally didn't mind flying, but he knew that this was one flight he would despise for a long time to come, as it symbolized the biggest speed bump in his relationship with Vanessa. One that they had to fight together to get over, or at least he hoped they could.

The older couple watched the sleek black car drive away, Shakira turned once more to her husband. After almost thirty-eight years together, she knew him as well as she knew herself and knew what the look on his face meant.

"Do you think you should check on Vanessa?" she asked.

Michael just nodded and looked at her. "Do you mind?" he asked. "I know you came back with me so we could spend time together, but…" he said, allowing his voice to trail off.

"Not at all. Go. Something tells me she could use a shoulder right now."

Michael waved a bellhop over and gave a request to help his wife get their bags up to their room and gave her a key. "I'll be there… well, I don't know when, but I may have a certain young lady tagging along."

Shakira offered him a small smile. "Whatever she needs." The two leaned in and shared a quick kiss. She played with the lapels of his shirt as she spoke her next words. "You have too many adopted grandchildren. You know that, don't you?"

The three walked to the elevators and rode to the floor containing the Caines' room, where Shakira and the bellhop exited. When the doors closed, Michael punched the button for floor twenty-six and took in a deep breath. He didn't know what shape he would find Vanessa in, but he knew he needed to be with her right now.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

Ashley had made the decision to not ask for hotel details; she would get the information she needed from Gina. Ashley didn't know what had happened with Vanessa and Zac. She knew that things had gotten hard for them lately, but that was the extent of her knowledge on the recent events. All she knew was that she needed to be there for her friend.

Wait, she'd need to be there for _both_ of her friends.

With that thought in mind, she quickly pulled her laptop from its case and pulled up the familiar website. Once her flight plans had been made, she reached to pick up her phone and dialed Zac's number, praying that he would pick up. She walked into her closet and pulled out the smaller of the two suitcases and started gathering clothes to put in as she listened to the rings. He had always been the emotionally stronger one, so if she was going to get any answers about what had happened, she knew it would more than likely be from him. Finally, hearing him pick up, she let out the breath she had been holding.

"_Before you say anything, promise me something?"_ he said into his phone in a small quiet voice, skipping all formalities with their mutual best friend.

"Sweetie, anything. You know that." Ashley couldn't help but notice as his voice wavered as he talked. _That's not like him,_ she thought to herself.

"_Look out for her. She needs a friend right now."_

"What about you?"

"_I'll survive."_

"Zac, what happened? I just got off the phone with Nessa and she's upset. I'm not talking typical 'he just left and I won't see him for several weeks' upset. I'm talking… Zac, I don't think I've ever seen her this upset. I have questions and need answers."

"_I can't answer them for you right now, Ash. I don't even think I know myself to be honest with you. She and I have a lot that we need to figure out and be certain about."_

Ashley finally realized that she was not going to get the answers she needed and made the decision that point blank was the best approach at this point in the conversation. She licked her lips and hesitated, fighting an internal battle with how to ask her next question. She knew it needed to be asked. Taking a deep breath, she plunged right in.

"Zac, did you two break up?" She noticed the hesitation that came with his answer.

"_I- I don't- I've gotta go, Ash. Just pulled up to the airport. I'll talk to you later," _he said and hung up his phone.

"Bye," she said to the dial tone before hanging up herself.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

Vanessa found herself on autopilot. After she hung up with Ashley, she pulled herself off the floor and moved into the kitchen. Filling the sink with soap and hot water, she began doing the few dishes that were in the sink. She found herself lost in a mental to do list and focused on what was to come within the next few days when she returned to the set. She was so lost in her thoughts that she didn't notice the knocks on her door or her name being called until the ringing of her cell phone brought her back to reality. With a glance at the screen, she noticed Michael's name flashing back at her. She dried her hands and picked up the phone.

"Hello?" she answered, trying hard to keep normalcy to her already fragile state of mind.

"_Vanessa, are you okay? I've been knocking for a few minutes."_

"What do you mean? Where are you?"

"_At your door."_

She immediately rushed to open the door. Michael noticed the faded Giants sweatshirt that seemed to swallow her body and all it took was one look into her deep brown eyes for Michael to know for a fact that whatever she would tell him would not be the absolute truth.

"How was your break?" she asked him after giving him a quick hug and letting him in.

"Very much needed," he told her. "Shakira came back with me."

"Oh, that's good!" Vanessa commented with a hint of forced excitement.

"Yeah." The two just looked at each other, both waiting for the other to crack first. Michael glanced down at Vanessa's hands for the tell tale sign and released a sigh of relief when he saw her treasured kuuipo ring that she only removed when they were filming still resting on her right hand. Then he noticed the bright redness of her hands. "What are you up to?"

"Just doing some dishes."

Michael walked over to the sink and reached his hand in the water to let it out and instantly pulled it back out. "Vanessa, that water's way too hot, Love."

"Really? I didn't notice."

Michael looked deep into her eyes again and for the first time since he appeared at her door, he picked up on more than the fact that they were red and puffy. He also saw the blankness, the emptiness, that she was trying to mask. He began to feel the all too familiar walls being raised again, just as before Zac's visit. He decided to tread lightly with his next choice of topic of conversation.

"Vanessa?"

"Hm?"

"I saw Zac in the lobby. He was coming off the elevator and walking towards the waiting car as Shakira and I were getting her key at the desk." He paused to watch her reaction. Noticing her wringing her hands and nervous fidgeting, he knew without even asking what had probably happened between the two. He noticed the tears fighting their way to the front of her eyes and cautiously continued. "Did something happen?"

"Um, yes. No. I- I don't know really."

"Why don't you come back to my room and spend the day with me and Shakira? I know she'd enjoy seeing you."

"I can't. I need to be here. I've got stuff to do before-"

"It will all still be here tomorrow, dear. You need to talk about whatever happened." Michael hesitantly approached her and reached out to gently touch her shoulder.

Vanessa pulled her shoulder away from him with a defiant look in her eyes. "No. If I talk about it, that makes it all real," she said as she turned her back on the older gentleman.

"You don't need to be alone right now."

"I'm not. I mean, I won't be. Ashley's coming. I need to clean up before she gets here."

"Vanessa-"

"Michael, I'm fine," she snapped. Realizing she may have sounded a little harsher than intended, she softened her tone. "Thank you for the offer. I'll call if I need anything."

She spun on her heel and walked into the bedroom, leaving Michael no choice but to let himself out.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

As Vanessa lay down on the bed, she pulled the extra pillow up next to her and snuggled into it, holding it tight against her body. She buried her face into the cool cotton and breathed deep, taking in the leftover fragrance of his Bath and Body Works Ocean body wash and cologne that she had bought him once "just to try something new". She knew when she bought it for him and how long he'd had it and couldn't help but wonder if he needed more. Should she buy him some more to make sure he had it on hand and be ready for use when he did run out? Maybe get him a different fragrance this time to try out? She knew that the company had a website and she had his address in New Orleans written down and kept it in her wallet so she wouldn't lose it, so ordering it and having it shipped to him wasn't completely out of the question.

Almost as soon as the thought came to mind, Vanessa instantly realized something else… _Should I even care anymore?_

Getting lost in the scent that Zac often commented to her reminded him of home and growing up so close to the Pacific Ocean, she allowed her eyes to close as her body began to relax. Sleep was a welcome distraction. When she slept, she didn't have to nurse her broken heart or ponder the unanswered questions about their relationship.

Her slumber was disturbed just a few hours later when she heard her phone buzz on the nightstand next her. Slowly opening her eyes, she leaned over and picked it up. She knew Ashley was on her way; maybe she was texting to let her know about a delay or some other changes to her flight arrangements. When she tapped the screen and the picture of her and Zac from their visit to Las Vegas to celebrate his birthday stared back at her, her eyes filled. Quickly swallowing the lump that appeared along with the tears, she pulled up the text message and noticed not Ashley's number, but his. She took a deep breath as she read the message from her boyfr-… her exboyfr-… the man who owned her heart and had for so many years.

_Layover. Just checking on you. How r u doing?_

She took in another deep breath of air as she contemplated what to type back. "I'm okay, don't worry about me" seemed too much like a slap in the face. She wasn't angry with him, so that seemed a bit too dramatic. "I'm missing you like crazy" would make it seem like she blamed him; he wasn't at fault for their current situation. Their work was. She finally decided on two words that she thought for certain would appease him.

_I'm fine._

_Don't shut me out, Van. How are you really?_ was his response back. She could almost see him shaking his head in frustration at her reply, but she didn't care. Not at that moment.

_I really can't get into it right now, Zac. Ash's on the way. Maybe we can talk l8r?_

Now she imagined him sighing and running his hand through his hair.

_That's fine. I'll call you?_

Vanessa stared at the question mark. _Does he feel like he needs permission to call me? We didn't break up… I don't think._

_K,_ she typed out.

_I love you, Baby, _she read_._

She struggled to get her next message out, but knew that it needed to be sent, so with trembling fingers, she punched the letters on her phone.

_I love you, too, Boo. _She put her phone back down on the table and lay back down against the pillows.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

Ashley's plane had landed, she had gotten the car to take her to the hotel in Waikiki, and was currently standing in the lobby. She fished the old receipt from her purse where she had written down the hotel information that Gina Hudgens gave her, and double checked the room number that her friend's mom had provided. Tucking the information back in her purse, she then gathered the handle of her suitcase in her hand and began pulling it behind her as she made her way over to the elevators. She watched as the buttons lit up as her ride passed each floor, until it finally stopped on twenty-six. When the doors opened, she grabbed the handle of her suitcase once more and stepped off, scanning the signs for the direction of room 2602.

Ashley used the time it took her to walk down the hall to try and briefly analyze the conversations she had with both Vanessa and Zac. Still trying to find any hidden meanings in their words, she quickly decided to just wait and physically see what she was in for.

As she reached the room of her best friend and former costar, she took a deep breath and brought a hand up to knock on the door and waited. When the door was opened, Ashley took a look at Vanessa and released the breath she was holding.

She took in the black yoga pants and the faded black San Francisco Giants hoodie sweatshirt that was about three sizes too big for her- very obvious to anyone that it was one of Zac's old sweatshirts from his high school days- and the messy loose ponytail that had tendrils falling from it and framing the petite face of the young woman in front of her. Ashley looked at Vanessa's eyes and noticed the redness, the puffiness, the dark circles, and wasted no time at all in holding out her arms. Vanessa in return wasted no time in walking forward and allowed herself to be tightly enveloped.

"Oh, Nesquick," she whispered. She allowed Vanessa to make the move to pull back first.

"I'm so glad you're here!" Vanessa exclaimed with the same forced excitement she'd used on Michael. "How long do you plan on staying?"

"As long as you need me to," Ashley answered her. _Okay, what's going on here? She was a wreck on the phone this morning._

"While you're here we can hit the beach. Ooo, and I have to be back on set tomorrow, so you can come and I can show you everything and introduce you to everyone and we can-"

"Nessa, honey, take a breath. We can work all that out later. I want to know about you."

"What about me?" she asked, turning to walk further into the room leaving Ashley to let herself in the rest of the way and shut the door behind her.

"How are you doing?" Ashley dared to ask.

"I'm fine. Why?"

Ashley chose her next words with caution. "When you called me this morning and told me that Zac-"

"I'm fine!" Vanessa's snapped response was quick and unexpected, causing Ashley to take a step back in surprise.

"Okay," was the only response she could think of. "I'll just take my stuff into the room and then we can sit and decide what to do. How does that sound?"

"Sounds good."

As Ashley made herself comfortable in the second room off the living room, she couldn't help but think of how Vanessa was holding back. She'd seen it all before- especially after the second round of pictures was released of Vanessa right before the premiere of _Bandslam_. As devastating as the first round had been, Vanessa had scratched and clawed her way out of it and had become a better person because of it. When the second batch came out, she hid behind a mask and kept telling everyone- herself included- that she was fine.

In that situation, several days went on, with a smile painted on her fragile face, until finally one night unexpectedly, the dam broke and all of Vanessa's insecurities came flooding out. Only two people had seen her in that state. One of them held the magic chocolate chip cookie dough and Smirnoff green apple wine coolers- _"A comfort routine passed down to me from Jennifer" _Ashley had told her.

Ashley knew the dam was bound to break again, at some point during this visit, and was prepared to pull out those big guns once again for her friend.

The only other person with a magic touch to calm Vanessa's brokenness had left Hawaii hours before and was on his way back to Louisiana to finish filming his own movie- and to ride his own emotional roller coaster.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

Meanwhile, as the plane descended safely into New Orleans, Zac waited until the pilot told the passengers all was safe and joined those around him as he stood to get his carry on from the overhead compartment. He held his iPhone in his hands as he made his way through the terminal to the baggage claim area to meet the driver that would take him back to his hotel. Several times he pulled her number up, his finger lingering over the green send button. Several times he found a reason to not call.

As he settled into the leather seats of the car, he finally decided to make the call. He put the phone to his ear and listened to the taunting ring back tone on the other end and waited.

Ashley emerged from the bathroom just in time to hear the ring tone of Vanessa's phone sounding throughout the suite. She watched as Vanessa paused in her walk across the room, looked at the phone, and closed her eyes, letting it keep ringing. When the ringing stopped, Vanessa kept walking and crossed through the doorway into her room, shutting the door behind her.

A repetitive beep was heard from the phone, so Ashley approached the counter and picked up the device. With just a gentle tap of the screen, Ashley saw that Vanessa had a voicemail and a few more taps showed her that Zac was the caller. With a look over her shoulder at the closed door, Ashley made a quick decision as she dialed her friend's number.

_Easy to ask for forgiveness later,_ she said to herself as she listened to the ringing on the other end.

"_Van? Baby?" _he answered anxiously.

"Zac, it's me," Ashley told him.

"_Ashley…" _he said.

"You sound rough," she told him.

"_Gee, thanks."_

"I take it you made it back to New Orleans? The flight was okay?"

"_The flight was crap. How's Van?"_ he asked, getting right to the point.

"I guess she's okay. I'll be able to answer more honestly if I knew what was going on. She's been really distant since I got here." Ashley could feel the effects of Zac's heavy sigh as it covered the distance from Louisiana all the way to Hawaii. "Zac, what happened?"

"_It just became too much, Ashley." _

"What's too much?"

"_The time apart, the distance. We don't know what to… we just…" _Zac let his voice trail off as he sighed again._ "…we don't know."_

"What don't you know?" Ashley racked her brain as she tried to figure out what to say next. She finally settled on the unanswered question from earlier in the day. "Zac, did you two break up?"

"_No, Ash, we didn't." _Ashley released a breath of air through her nose which Zac caught onto. Finally it dawned on him that he should be completely honest. _"Actually, I can't say no. We didn't really decide anything. We just… talked and then I left. Nothing was complete."_

"So you two _are _still together?"

"_Technically, yeah, we are."_

"Technically?" Ashley knew she needed more information, but unless he or Vanessa passed that information on to her, she wasn't going to get it. "Zac, hon, you know Vanessa's phone is going to blow up. She's not going to want to answer, so it'll be up to me. What do I tell everyone?"

"_Let me talk to Ness."_

"I don't know if she's up to talking-"

"_Let me talk to Ness," _he said again, a little more forcefully.

Ashley made her way to the room and cautiously rapped on the door.

"Nesquick? Phone's for you." She waited as Vanessa slowly opened the door and emerged from the room, taking the phone from Ashley's hand without saying a word. She brought the phone to her ear as she sat down on the couch, pulling her feet up under her and reaching for the pillow. She took a deep breath and spoke into the phone in a small, barely audible, voice.

"Hello?"

"_Baby, your voice sounds so amazing."_

Vanessa closed her eyes at the sound of his voice making its way into her ears. "Zac?" she asked as she choked on a sob.

"_Baby, don't cry. Please? I don't like it when you cry and I'm not there to dry your tears."_

"I miss you so much."

"_I know, Van. I miss you, too. But Baby, we need to figure out what exactly we want to do."_

"What do you mean 'what we _want_ to do'? I know what I want to do. I want to still be in your arms, Boo. I want to be right there with you."

"_I know, Baby. I know." _His heart shattered as he listened to the sound of her voice on the other end, knowing the reason why it sounded so broken. _"But what are we going to tell everyone? You know our families are going to ask questions. Hell, Van, Ashley already is. What do we tell her?"_

Vanessa sighed as she realized what he was asking. She looked at Ashley and noticed how she was trying to appear busy in the kitchen and as if she wasn't listening. Vanessa stood from the couch and walked into the bedroom, shutting the door behind her.

Ashley turned and faced the sink, filled it with fresh water and occupied herself by finishing the dishes that Vanessa had started that morning. About ten minutes into her task, the door opened again and Vanessa emerged, surprisingly dry eyed.

"You look better," Ashley commented.

Vanessa gave her a small smile. "He convinced me to wash my face. How did he know that I hadn't done that yet?"

"He can still read your mind, I guess. How are you feeling?"

"I just wish we had a definite something to tell people. I mean, did we break up? No. That much I know. But what are we exactly? When I call Mom, what do I tell her?"

"It's got to be hard to be so uncertain. I wish I knew what to say to that."

"Anyway, I don't really want to talk about that now. How long are you staying?" Vanessa asked her guest, trying to change the subject.

Ashley wasn't sure that was the best tactic, but knew that she was there for Vanessa, and was willing to take her lead.

_It's just a matter of time before the other shoe drops,_ she thought to herself.

"Um, I'm only here for a few days unfortunately. I've got meetings in LA before I go back to Vancouver for _Hellcats_, but I'm yours while I'm here."

The two girls enjoyed each other's company and spent the next day on set while Vanessa filmed a few scenes and the following day basking in the sun on the beach. When the sun tired them out, the girls retired back to the room for a quick power nap and then bonded some more over retail therapy. Before too long, it was time for Ashley to head back to California and the girls were saying their goodbyes.

"Thank you for coming, Ash," Vanessa told her as the two friends shared a tight hug.

"I'm always here for you, Nesquick. You know that, right?" Ashley pulled back and looked her friend in the eyes. Vanessa gave her a small smile before responding.

"I know. I also know that you were counting on the chocolate chip cookie dough and the Smirnoff. Sorry we didn't need it."

"This time. But one day, Hudgens!" Ashley started, with a finger playfully pointed in Vanessa's face. "One day you'll need it, and when you do-"

"-you'll be there with it?"

"Of course I will be. Just call me when you do," Ashley told her before turning and picking up her small suitcase. She faced Vanessa once again before leaving for good. "Hey," she started. When she had Vanessa's attention, she continued. "You two just hit a rough patch. You'll get through it together and you will be stronger for it. Remember that."

Vanessa gave a small nod and Ashley leaned forward and the two friends shared another hug, before Ashley turned and walked out the door.

When the door was closed, Vanessa sighed. For the first time since Zac left, she was truly alone. And she wasn't sure how she felt about it.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

The next two weeks for Vanessa passed in a blur. Somehow she had managed to get herself out of bed every morning and keep going with her days. As hard as it was to face that fact that she and Zac were up in the air after being so strong together for over five years, she knew that she'd be able to handle whatever came her way, one day at a time. As long as she got up each morning, got herself dressed, filmed the scenes that needed to be filmed, and made it back to her room, she'd make it and all would be okay.

She spent some of her alone time after Ashley left to call her parents and forewarn them. That was an interesting phone call. Her dad was not impressed that there was no definite explanation for what they were going through, but had offered his support for his Baby V just the same.

"_If you need us there, you just say the word, Baby V. You know your mom or I or both will be there as soon as we can," Greg Hudgens told his oldest daughter._

"_I know, Daddy. Thank you, but I'm okay I think. As hard as it is to admit it, I'm doing okay. I just wanted to let you guys know because… well, because this is going to leak out and I don't know what's going to be said and I just didn't want you to be taken by surprise."_

"_Thank you for letting us know, Sweetheart. I guess I'll give Zac a call and see how he's doing."_

"_What's that, Dad? You care? Do I detect…" Vanessa paused and let a playful gasp escape from her lips "the hint of a tear? Oh, that's so sweet!" Vanessa couldn't help but pick on her father._

"_Watch it, Smart One," Greg reprimanded. _

"_I love you, Daddy," she said him with a smile. "I'll talk to you guys later. Tell Stella if she has any questions she can call me and I'll do the best I can to help her make sense of it all."_

The phone calls between the young couple came more frequently over those two weeks than they had the whole two months that they had been physically separated. They weren't able to talk every time one called the other, but Zac and Vanessa certainly were making the effort. Making time for each other was one of their biggest problems that they encountered during their time apart and they were trying to make up for that after his visit. They may not have come up with a definite definition for what they were, but it was a comfort to each other knowing that they were at least trying, no matter how hard it was.

One day, however, almost two whole weeks after Zac's visit, the beginning of the hardest days came.

After wrapping for the day, Zac was making himself comfortable in his suite in Louisiana. He picked up the remote and leaned back against the couch cushions while flipping through the channels, before something caught his eye. He turned up the volume as he leaned up to focus on the picture on the television set. The picture of him a Vanessa… in Hawaii… as they were exiting the restaurant on his last night visiting her…

"_Which of Hollywood's up and coming super couples was caught making out in public just last week? Stay tuned and we'll tell you after the break."_

With a heavy sigh, Zac leaned over and reached for his phone. He waited patiently as the ringing from the other end echoed through his ears. Finally, she answered.

"_Hi, Babe. How was your day?"_

"It was good up until about five minutes ago. Yours?"

"_It's actually still going on. I was on a break and about to head back, so I've only got just a minute. What's up?" _Vanessa could tell by the sound of his voice that the reason for his call was not a good one.

"Make sure you watch E News tonight," he told her.

"_What? Why? What's going on?" _she asked him cautiously.

"We're on there," he told her. She knew him well enough to know that the tone he was using was bordering on anger.

"_Uh-oh," _she said, pausing in the middle of the pathway that would lead her back to the set._ "What'd they say?"_

"Nothing yet. I just managed to catch the teaser before a commercial and there was a picture of us on my last night visiting you as we were coming out of the restaurant."

"_Oh, geez," _she said, as she released a sigh. Normally she didn't mind when they made it on E News- neither of them had done anything too terrible, except for her pictures years ago, to worry about whether the news would be good or bad- but given their recent relationship status, she wasn't too sure how she felt about this. She took a deep breath before continuing. _"Okay, well, I need to go for now. I think I've only got two more scenes or so before I'm done for today and I'll make sure to catch the 11:30 showing of it. You'll be in bed by then, so I'll talk to you tomorrow?"_

"That's fine. Push this out of your mind for now. You need to go and focus. We'll talk later. Love you!"

"_I love you, too!"_

They ended the call and Zac turned his focus back to the television and what Ryan Seacrest and Giuliana Rancic were saying about him and Vanessa.

"_Zac Efron and Vanessa Hudgens were spotted in Hawaii a few days ago," _Ryan started._ "And from the looks of it, they were enjoying each others company just a little bit! Giuliana has the story. G?"_

"_Ryan, Zac took a break from filming his own movie over Thanksgiving to make the journey to visit his High School sweetheart…" _

Zac watched as the rest of the story played out and was surprised that there wasn't much to it.

_Surprisingly truthful…_ he thought. He reached out for his phone and typed out a quick text to Vanessa.

_Watched the clip. Nothing to worry about. All pretty accurate. They had a video though. Get some rest. We'll talk tomorrow. Love you!_

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

The two played phone tag the following day. However, they were able to catch each other and talk the day after that about the video that E News had acquired and both had decided that it was really no big deal; it would blow over. The conversation quickly turned to Vanessa's birthday that was quickly approaching.

"_I wish I could be there with you,"_ Zac had told her.

"Boo, it's okay. You know that! You and I had a whole week together. I understand that you can't leave the set again so soon."

"_I'll just join you in Vegas, then. We can celebrate there," _he told her, trying to slyly slip that statement into the conversation without her noticing.

"Nice try, Zac. I told you two months ago that the party in Vegas was girls only!"

"_Damn!" _he said with a disappointed snap of his fingers.

Vanessa giggled at his outburst. "I like how you snuck that in there, though. Very clever of you."

"_Thanks," _he said sarcastically. "_So two more days…"_

"Yep. Two more days." He could almost hear the grin in her voice.

"_You excited?" _He realized as soon as the question left his mouth how dumb it was. This was the same girl who started celebrating her birthday four months prior to the actual day and continued celebrating until St. Patrick's Day. _It's my day. I can celebrate as long as I want to,_ she had told him once before.

"When am I not excited?"

"_Point taken."_

"Are there going to be any deliveries I should be expecting?" she asked him.

"_I don't know. I can talk to Dylan and see if he's shipping your gift or not. Or I can even make a call to Mom and Dad if it's that important to you," _he told her, picking on her even more.

"Zac!" she cried, causing him to chuckle.

"_I'm kidding, Babe! I guess you'll just have to wait and see, won't you?"_

The conversation finally ended when Vanessa insisted Zac get some rest. He was almost done with his filming and she was adamant about him ending strong. Little did they both know that tomorrow would be a great big slap to their faces and their concentration would be tested.

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

All the way on the coast of the Gulf of Mexico, Zac was wide awake and ready to start his day much earlier than Vanessa. When he arrived on set that day, he was greeted not with high fives from the crew as was the norm, but with various looks that made him somewhat uncomfortable. Looks of sympathy, looks of confusion, looks of disbelief. Baffled himself, he made his way to his trailer, only to be stopped halfway by his costar Taylor.

"Zac?" she called out to him.

"Yeah?"

"Is it true? I'm so sorry," she said, trying to keep her tone considerate.

"Is what true? Taylor, what's going on? Why's everyone giving me funny looks?"

"Have you not seen-" Taylor stopped, letting her voice drift off. _He's in denial._

"Not seen what? Taylor, I need something to go on here!" Something was going on and he was starting to get frustrated.

"Zac, I'm so sorry. The internet said-" Taylor stopped when she realized what she had just said. "Oh, no."

Zac gently pushed Taylor aside and reached the door of his trailer, slamming the door behind him, and quickly pulled his laptop from his back pack and brought it to life. Within minutes, he had the answer to his question. The words on the screen screamed at him and the blood boiled in his veins.

"_Zac and Vanessa: The End?" _he spoke out loud, fighting to keep his voice level. "What the hell?"

Ignoring the fact that it was only 5:30 in the morning in Hawaii, he snatched up his phone and found Vanessa's number and hit send.

"C'mon, Van, answer. I know you're asleep, but I need you to wake up right now!" He paced the small amount of space in his trailer as he waited. Finally he stopped moving when he heard her sleepy voice on the other end of the phone.

"_Hello?"_

"Van, I need you to wake up, Baby. I need you fully alert so you can listen. Are you with me?"

"_Zac, what's going on? Is everything okay?" _she asked, slowly rubbing her eyes as she sat up in bed.

"Turn on your computer," he demanded.

"_What?"_

"Turn on your computer," he told her once more. "I'll wait."

"_Zac, can this not wait until-"_

"No, Vanessa. It can't wait. This is important!"

"_Okay,"_ was all she could say. _It must be serious. He doesn't use the full name._

Vanessa made her way out of bed as quickly as she could despite the early hour. When the computer finally booted up, she pulled up the Google search engine.

"_Okay, what am I looking for?"_

"E Online," he told her. He could hear the pecking of the keys on the other end of the line as Vanessa typed in the address and waited for her to find what he needed her to see and closed his eyes as he counted to ten in attempts to calm himself. He made it to three when her reaction reached his ears.

"_Oh, my God," _was all she could manage to get out. The two sat in silence for what seemed like forever. Finally, Vanessa broke the silence. _"Zac? What is this?"_

"An evil joke," he told her. "Vanessa, who's behind this?"

"_How am I supposed to know? Zac, I didn't- I don't- Did you talk to anyone?"_

"Other than Mom and Dad, just Ashley. What about you?"

"_The same," _she told him as she stood from her spot on the couch and began pacing the floor. _"What are we going to do?" _she asked him, trying to hide the tears in her voice. Zac let out a deep sigh as he thought for a moment.

"Okay. I'm going to call Gina and Britt and get one of them out here. You need to talk to Evan. Maybe between the three of them we can come up with something."

"_Um, Zac? Don't you think this is our thing and that we should handle it?"_

"How, Van? How do you suppose that we handle this?" His voice was starting to rise and his anger was starting to overtake him. Vanessa swallowed and tried to keep her voice level before she spoke again.

"_Why are you getting angry at me, Zac? I'm a victim in this, too."_

Hearing those words come from her mouth caused him to force himself to calm down, for her sake. "You're right," he told her. "I'm sorry. I don't mean to get angry at you. I'm just-"

"_Angry at the situation. I know. Believe me, I know."_

Zac released another frustrated sigh. "I wish I was there with you right now."

"_What would you do, Zac? You being here in Hawaii would more than likely not change what a 'source close to the couple' has said," _she tried to reason with him.

"I know it probably wouldn't, Baby, but I'd at least be able to hold you until everything blew over."

"_Zac, something tells me this isn't going to just 'blow over'," _she reluctantly told him.

The two continued their conversation, working each other through their mutual anger and shock, until Zac heard his name being called, instructing him to report to hair and makeup.

"Van, Baby, I've gotta go. Here's what I want you to do. I want you to be strong. Especially today. Can you do that for me?" When he heard her confirmation, he continued. "Good. Now if anyone asks us about these insane rumors, we just won't say anything. Okay? Not until we have a chance to talk about everything." He heard her sniffle on the other end and knew she was about to break. "Baby, please don't cry. Not when I'm not there with you. These rumors don't change anything between us. Got it?" Another sniffle. "Van? Baby, did you hear what I just said?"

"_I heard you,"_ she told him, her voice weak.

"Nothing. This changes nothing. Not for me. I love you. So much."

"_I love you, too, Boo. I miss you." _Vanessa felt the sting of hot tears and pulled her hand up to furiously wipe them away.

"I miss you, too. I'll talk to you later, okay?"

"_Okay."_

"Good. Remember, just hold your head high and don't say anything. We'll figure it all out soon."

It broke Zac's heart to end the call, but he knew he had to. Now if he could just convince himself of what he had just worked hard to convince Vanessa…

**ZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVFZVF**

After reluctantly ending the call, Vanessa knew- despite the early hour- that trying to get back to sleep was out of the question. She forced herself to get in the shower and used the temperature of the water to calm her anger.

_How did this happen?_ she asked herself, shaking her head. _It doesn't matter now. What's done is done. You can't worry about that now, Ness._

She finished her shower and got dressed quickly. When she heard her phone ringing from the bedside table, she went to answer it, letting out a sigh when she saw the number on the screen. _Mom and Dad, home_ it read. She closed her eyes in an attempt to calm herself before answering.

"You guys are calling early," she said with forced cheerfulness.

"_What's going on?" _Vanessa heard her mom's voice ask from the other end.

"I'm doing great, thank you for asking. How are you guys doing?" Vanessa asked pointedly.

"_Vanessa, Sweetie, Stella just came downstairs and showed us what's on the internet. She's very confused, as are we. We thought everything was getting better after his visit over Thanksgiving? What happened?" _Gina asked her daughter.

"We don't know, Mom. That's just it. This was as much of a shock to us as it is to you guys. Zac got to the set this morning and found out about our 'breakup' from one of his co-stars and then called me."

"_What was his reaction?"_

"He was angry, of course. So much so that he thought I had something to do about it. I told him to not blame me, that I'm a victim, too."

"_What did he say to that?"_ Gina knew that Vanessa would have called her eventually, but she also knew that with her daughter and her daughter's boyfriend being who they were, the phone calls would start coming at the house and she needed to know what to say- if anything. She also needed time to coach Greg in what the two young adults chose to do for when said phone calls started disrupting the peace at the Hudgens' home.

"He thinks that we shouldn't say anything about it to anyone. Just keep out heads held high and go on about our day."

"_Honey, I adore Zac. You know that. But is he really that naive to think it's going to be that easy?"_

"He thinks it's going to just blow over, Mom," Vanessa sat down on the edge of the bed while she prepared to share her fears with her mother. "But I don't think it will. If anything, it's only going to get worse before it gets better."

"_Have you two talked about what to tell the press when they start calling?"_

"Nothing. No 'no comment', no 'they're just fine', nothing. Okay? Tell them _nothing._ If the phone rings, just don't even answer it."

"_If you're sure…" _Gina paused as her youngest asked her something. _"Ness, Stella wants to talk to you."_

After reassuring her sister that yes, she and Zac were still together and hadn't broken up but merely hit a rough patch that they're trying to work through and gave her the same instructions she had just gave their mom, Vanessa hung up her phone, and started getting ready for her day of filming. She averted four calls from numbers she didn't know during that short period of time and three more during the ride to the set. She rolled her eyes when she read and deleted the fifth text message of the day from someone at a magazine who had somehow gotten her number.

_I have got to get my number changed!_ she angrily thought to herself._ I wonder if Zac is having this much trouble._ She attempted to call him, uncertain if he would answer or not and was not surprised to learn that he had turned off his phone. _Pretty smart move, Efron. _She followed his lead and turned hers off as well.

As emotionally hard as that day had been for Vanessa and Zac, it was only preparing them for the next day. She was awakened from her magical dream on the morning of her twenty-second birthday to the sound of knocking at the door of her suite. She reached out to wrap her arms around his body and snuggle into his warm, bare chest just as a second knock was heard. Groaning when she reached a bare sheet instead of rippling muscles, Vanessa pulled herself from the confines of her bed and stumbled through her sleepy state to the door. Standing on her tiptoes, she peered through the peephole and saw Jeff- the bellhop from the hotel- standing on the other side.

"Good morning, Ms. Hudgens," Jeff greeted her when she opened the door. "These are for you. Special delivery."

Vanessa smiled at him as she struggled to hide her blush. "Who are they from?" she asked as she reached out to take the embarrassingly huge bouquet of roses and daisies- her favorites- from his hands.

"I didn't read the card," Jeff told her.

"Oh, c'mon, Jeff. You know something!" Vanessa goaded him into spilling the beans as she reached for her wallet to pull out some cash for a tip.

"All I know is that I am to leave the flowers with you and to wish you a happy birthday. I hope you have a great day, Ms. Hudgens."

"Thank you, Jeff!" she called out to him as she shut the door. She reached for the card and opened it, reading it quickly as her smile widened. She quickly ran back into the bedroom and grabbed her phone. Finding the number, she hit send and waited to hear his voice.

"_Happy birthday, Nessa."_

"Thank you, Boo. I just got a pretty embarrassing delivery," she told him.

"Thank you for my flowers. They're beautiful."

"_So are you…"_ he told her.

"You're so cheesy, Zac!" she playfully reprimanded him.

"_I meant every word I wrote in the card, Van," _he told her as his voice softened.

"I know you did," she said, as she worked to match the tone of her voice with his. "I just need to be reminded of it every now and then. Especially now."

"_And I will try my hardest to do just that."_

The two ended their conversation a short time later and Vanessa sat down on the couch, clutching the card in her hands. She made herself comfortable and read it again, committing it to memory.

"_My Nessa,_

_Happy birthday to you, my love. These past couple of months have been hard for us, but for your birthday, I want to promise you something. I promise you that everything will get better for us. You and I will remain strong and we will become even stronger than before. _

As she finished reading his sweet words, Vanessa wiped her eyes and stood up, making her way into the bathroom. As she got ready to begin her day, she knew one thing for certain. No matter what happened within the next few days while they waited for everything to "blow over", she and Zac would overcome everything and they would only be stronger because of their trials. She smiled to herself as she lathered the shampoo in her hair.

_Happy birthday, Nessa, indeed. I can't wait to be able to celebrate with him when we see each other again…  
_


End file.
